An Exercise in Confidence-building
by kanestiel
Summary: Victor thinks he's made a breakthrough towards earning is fiance the gold at the Grand Prix.


The winter air was biting as they walked away from the cafe. Their engagement announcement was fresh in their minds, and while Victor looked to the their future with the utmost optimism he knew the his counterpart was likely churning himself into a nervous fit. It was his way and he knew that there was nothing that could change it.

"You okay?" he asked, giving his fiance's shoulder a squeeze. Just as he thought, Yuuri's eyes were wide with nerves barely contained beneath a smile. He knew that look well.

"Of course. I'm fine," he replied in a voice a touch too high for either of them to believe the lie. But thankfully Victor didn't push the issue and only smiled. Yuuri leaned in to the warmth of the older man's coat, relishing the arm the snaked around his shoulders and pulled him close. He rested his head on Victor's shoulder and felt a gentle kiss pressed into his hair. The pair continued on. It wasn't long however before Yuuri was worrying at the ring on his finger, twisting back and forth as he was still unused to it's presence. He became unaware of the steel grey eyes that watched him, or of the smile that had formed on his own face.

"So no regrets then?" Victor quietly asked.

"Of course not!" Came the quick reply and a vigorous head shake. "Not that…" He looked down at his ring again. He was stopped with a hand pressed to his chest. Deft fingers cupped his chin and lifted his gaze to meet Victor's half-lidded one. There was a gasp from his lips as a breath died in his chest. "So what is it?" His voice was a whisper. Yuuri's lips parted as Victor's gloved thumb grazed it, and a soft exhale condensed in the cold air.

"I-it just hardly seems real…" gasped the young man, his face slowed, and the bustling holiday shoppers around them melted away. Neither of them blinked, for fear that the break in contact would snap them away from the fairytale that they found themselves in. Victor's smile deepened, reaching his eyes and making them twinkle. Yuuri matched his gaze before reaching up to tuck the silver bangs behind an ear. He didn't remove it however, and it was soon encompassed by Victor's other.

"You have beautiful eyes," he murmured. Victor let out a chuckle and their gaze was broken as the chuckle became full on laughter. Embarrassed, Yuuri's face reddened and he frowned. "What?" he pouted, "I know it was lame, sorry-"

"No, Yuuri," Victor wiped his eyes, "no, don't-" he cupped the skater's face and pulled it towards his own. The resulting gasp was muffled and Yuuri's embarrassment vanished as he pushed back into the kiss, wrapping an arm around Victor's waist and resting his other hand at the nape of his neck. His fiancé tasted of the espresso that they had mere hours ago. Victor's hands stroked his cheeks before journeying downward, down his neck and over his collarbone. They finally ended at his shoulders when Yuuri opened his mouth and poked at his bottom lip with his tongue. A moan escaped his lips and his fingers clenched the man's shoulders. Not painfully, but hard enough to communicate his plea. " _Please,"_ they said, " _more."_

"It's cold," Yuuri whispered against his lips before quirking into a slight grin. "Let's go back to our room, eh?"

Good Yuuri. Good, sweet, beautiful Yuuri.

"Yes," he smiled. "Let's"

While they were no more than a few blocks away from the hotel, the walk back felt miles long. Hearts pounding, they didn't speak a word as Yuuri let the hand gripping his pull him along down the street and through the front lobby at a half-run. They were past caring if their display earned them notice from onlookers. They were unimportant. They didn't exist.

Their eyes burned into one another's as they waited for the elevator to arrive. Their breath was heavy, thick with exertion and need. Yuuri backed the Russian inside as soon as the doors opened and after hurriedly jabbing the button to their floor, Victor caught his lover in his arms and their lips were crushed together again. Yuuri's windswept hair was further mussed as fingers carded through it, grabbing it desperately and pulling him closer. He needed more, so much more than he was getting. Yuuri began attacking Victor's coat, forcing it open before his hands slid beneath his sweater and shirt to splay across the taunt flesh underneath. Victor recoiled from the frigid touch with a hiss. He snatched the offending hand away with a glower, his eyes burning. Yuuri went to kiss him again, only for his efforts to be in vain as his coach leaned away.

"Victor?" he breathed. His face grew hot under the other man's gaze, so heated and intense. He could probably win the Gold from that look alone. For all he knew, Victor probably had.

Yuuri's eyes fell closed when when his captured hand was brought to the other man's lips. Victor nosed at the palm softly before placing a kiss there. It was immediately followed by another, then another until his kisses began to travel upwards. They paused at the shining golden band. There the kiss was firm, almost possessive. It elicited a small gasp from the receiver's chest before he pulled his hand from Victor's grasp and captured his lips once again. This time he _gave back,_ gave back the kisses, the sacrifice and the love that his teacher had so selflessly showered upon him. He heard a giggle, from who he wasn't sure. The tongue in his mouth told him he didn't care, this was all that mattered and-

 _Ding_

"Come on Mavis, let's go." The two broke apart immediately at the sound of a third voice, and looked over in time to see a thoroughly embarrassed elderly man tug his mesmerized wife out of the elevator while muttering under his breath. They froze.

 _Oh._

"Oh don't mind me! You boys have fun!" she called to them from the other side of the closing elevator doors. Mortified, Yuuri made the beginnings of a protest before the walls echoed with clanging metal.

"Oh no, we've been caught," Victor cheerfully added with a chuckle and a shrug. His partner rounded on him.

"That's not funny!" he spat. The laughter stopped only momentarily, quickly giving way to more. He refused to talk further, but when apologetic arms encompassed him and pulled him close he allowed his embarrassment to ebb.

"You didn't know they were there did you?" His voice was muffled in the plush of a thick wool sweater. He was answered with a no, of course not. The elevator stopped once more, this time at the proper floor. Victor continued as they made their way to their room, never missing a beat.

"How could I when I was being so viciously attacked?"

"Well-"

"Besides," Victor fished out their key card and gave it a rushed swipe, "weren't we just kissing in the middle of the street?"

That was a good point, Yuuri decided as he hung his and Victor's coats up in the closet. That didn't make him feel any better though, but he couldn't put a finger on why. Perhaps it was-

"I have a thought," Victor quipped, his face a sly smirk. Yuuri slowly closed the closet door.

"And that is?"

Victor tilted his head, a finger resting on his chin.

"Perhaps the confidence issues that disrupt your skating can be attributed to your personal shyness. While you are _very clearly_ capable of performing sexually.." Visions of the pole dance flashed through his memory, "you were also so drunk that you were no longer coherent."

"Yeah?"

God that stupid self-satisfied smile, he wanted to wipe it off his perfect face.

"That means that you struggle to perform when you know people are watching. _So.."_ He turned and threw the curtains open with a flourish, revealing the brightly lit city of Barcelona below them.

"...I say we fix that by finishing what we started in the elevator."


End file.
